Great stuff as always, Alan. When's your book coming out? (hehehehe)
Your theory sounds good. However, the URL below shows a pic out of a Canadian WW2
vehicle handbook, indicating the "official" rotation direction. Maybe they were
more concerned about stopping? :-)
A great many pics I've seen show BOTH directions, on varied wheels. Perhaps the
RCEME people simply put them on as they pleased.
I just wish I could find these tyres....
> First, let's make sure we are talking in the same direction. When I say
> that the V is pointing forward, I mean that the POINT IS POINTING
> FORWARD WHEN LOOKING DOWN ON THE TIRE, as shown here:
> http://www.deere.com/ag/tractors/7000/7k.htm
>
> A tire with a forward-pointing V will tend to be self-clearing on soft
> surfaces as the tire slips. Consider mud, for example.
>
> Since the point of the V hits the mud first, the mud will be pushed
> towards the outside of the tread as the tire slips in it, rather than
> being gathered toward the center where it can't escape. This allows the
> tread to keep biting, rather than turning the tread into a mud-packed
> 'racing slick.' So, you have BETTER FORWARD TRACTION with a
> forward-pointing V.
>
> However, a drawback to the forward-pointing V is REDUCED BRAKING on
> gooey ground, where the opposite will happen. If the tire slips while
> braking, it will fill up the tread and slide more easily on the surface.
> At typical off-road speeds, this is usually not much of a factor,
> although it can get a bit dicey going down a steep hill.
>
> Ruts in soft or muddy roads also tend to get deeper after a convoy of
> forward-V-tired vehicles, since the dirt keeps getting pushed out of the
> center of each rut towards the sides. However, the ruts would tend to
> remain a bit drier and harder, so it still might be better in the short
> run.
===
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